Artesia, California - Mayor Rene Trevino has heard the outcry from Artesia employees and managers about working conditions and horror stories under City Manager William "Bill" Rawlings. Union President Andrew Perry approached the City Council at the last council meeting, letting them know about a newly forming managers union. Perry asked for their support. Mayor Rene Trevino gave it. Afterwards, President Perry tells the Eye on Pioneer, "When Mayor Trevino first ran for council, I had reservations. I regret that now. I see him for what he truly is. He's independent. He's honest. He is his own man, and he speaks from his heart and out of principle." Perry said, "This is the rare type of person whom we want to see in public office.  In the future he and I may disagree on something, but at the end of the day you can't help but respect him because he wears his heart on his sleeve. This shows that he has true character. On behalf of the employees, and...

  California's State Auditor has a "High Risk" program that catalogues cities which are considered high risk for financial reasons. By the standards set by the State Auditor, Artesia would very likely be considered 'high risk', but the City seems to be off the State of California's radar for a very strange reason: no data. According to the California State Auditor, cities are considered ' high risk ' if their financial reports suggest that a City is having problems paying bills, has a low general reserve, or has some other financial issue that affects the lawful operation of a City.  The data gathered in this High Risk Program are received from financial reports submitted by cities every year, in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). But, what happens if a City doesn't submit an annual report, and hasn't done so in years?  The last time the City of Artesia submitted an annual financial report was for fiscal year 2016-...

  Eye on Pioneer's Andrew Perry interviews progressive Congressional candidate Elizabeth Moreira about her platform, the challenges, and why she's running for California's 38th Congressional District.

  Artesia, California - Union President Andrew Perry  confronted the Artesia City Council during the public comments segment of the regular City Council meeting. Union President Andrew Perry (Artesia Local 1520 - AFSCME) confronts the City Council during the public comments segment of the regular City Council meeting. In particular, Mr. Perry addresses the votes of three councilmembers who sought to prevent future reports against the practices of City Manager Bill Rawlings, by removing a clause from a policy that made it easier for employees to report. Several employees had already given reports about their experiences with the City Manager using this policy. This is the public comment in its entirety: Mayor and City Council, my name is Andrew Perry, and I’m an employee of the City and President of AFSCME Local 1520 - our employee union. In November 2020, the City Council adopted a policy which essentially opened up another avenue for employees to report workplace bul...

  Artesia, California - Three Artesia councilmembers appeared to have violated the Ralph M. Brown Act. The Brown Act is a California law that governs how public meetings by legislative bodies (like a City Council), and ensures the public’s right to participate in these meetings. Section 14 of the Brown Act says: A person may not disclose confidential information that has been acquired by being present in a closed session authorized by Section 54956.7, 54956.8, 54956.86, 54956.87, 54956.9, 54957, 54957.6, 54957.8, or 54957.10 to a person not entitled to receive it, unless the legislative body authorizes disclosure of that confidential information. At the June 14 Council meeting, three councilmembers admitted during the meeting that they discussed in closed session, allegations that the City Manager Bill Rawlings had done some sort of wrongdoings. Context Behind the Violation At the time, the City Council was trying to strike down a policy that allowed employees to report unethical...

  Project Unity, a volunteer group comprised of Gahr, Cerritos, and Whitney High School students, hosted its first major event on July 29-31. It was a food drive to benefit the Long Beach Rescue Mission. Eye on Pioneer's video  crew examined how the community of Artesia got together to help make this event so successful. While the food drive was ultimately led and organized by Project Unity, there were several other groups who partnered together to put this event together. Local 1520 of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (the City employee union) hosted the event, provided donations, and even helped chaperone the event. The Artesia Sunrise Masonic Lodge provided the space and facilities for the event. This was a loose coalition of volunteer groups who banded together under the banner of 'United Artesians'. Many residents donated canned goods and personal hygiene items, including Mayor Rene Trevino, Mayor Pro Tem Melissa Ramoso, and Councilmem...

                                                                                                                                                                        Artesia’s City Manager William “Bill” Rawlings has a history of creating tumultuous work environments. For the past eight years, Rawlings has successfully created a repressive work environment, especially within the offices of City Hall. At least, that is what employees who work under him say. This overall dissatisfaction among the City’s workforce manifests itself in the City’s ever-increasing turnover rates ...